Heathrow Runway 3 Decision in Holding Pattern Until Summer 2016

The final decision on whether or not to build another runway near all the runways of runway specialist Heathrow has been delayed, with the Ultimate Final Yes Or No now scheduled to be made some time during the summer of 2016.

The government says it agrees with the Airports Commission's decisions and that, yes, we do need more runways in the bottom corner of England to cope with demand for holidays and rich people spending weekends in their London flats over the coming decades -- but it needs more time to look at environmental issues before giving Heathrow the final go ahead to start bulldozing quaint pubs to make way for more tarmac.

The news comes from transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin, who said: "The case for aviation expansion is clear -- but it’s vitally important we get the decision right so that it will benefit generations to come. We will undertake more work on environmental impacts, including air quality, noise and carbon. We must develop the best possible package of measures to mitigate the impacts on local people. We will continue work on all the shortlisted locations, so that the timetable for more capacity set out by Sir Howard is met."

What with all those meetings in Paris about pollution and stuff, it's probably quite a bad time to start welcoming in more polluting tubes and turning trees into wood trim for executive lounge bidet handles. Not to mention all the potentially dangerous foreign people these aeroplane things tend to be full of. [Gov.uk via BBC]